#PandaStory: Xiao Qi Ji Belly Slides in the Snow - Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Recently, Xiao Qi Ji has been eating a lot more bamboo, especially the culm (stalk). While Mei Xiang sits and eats her breakfast, he often plops down beside her and shares her piece of bamboo. Giant panda cubs will nurse for as long as mom allows; lately, Xiao Qi Ji has been nursing about once a day.

At his most recent weigh-in, Xiao Qi Ji tipped the scales at 98.5 pounds (44.8 kilograms)—about 10 pounds more than last month. Adult male giant pandas in human care typically top out around 300 pounds, so he's still got some growing to do. That said, he's now at an age and size where keepers have stopped going into the enclosure with him. Since we have spent the last year training Xiao Qi Ji to shift in and out of the enclosures on cue, the way we care for him has not changed all that much. He is a great listener and comes right when we call him most days.

There's something magical about watching giant pandas play in the snow. On Jan. 3, Washington D.C. experienced its first snow storm of 2022. Although Xiao Qi Ji was unsure of what to think of the snow last year, there was no denying his excitement about it this time around. He had a lot of fun rolling around, wrestling with Mei Xiang and even belly-sliding in the snow!

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